Stakeholders raise the alarm over drug-resistant TB as infection kills 18 Nigerians hourly


Stakeholders in the health sector have called for better attention to Tuberculosis (TB) infection, saying efforts to combat it is currently being threatened by the emergence of drug-resistant cases that could put the gains made to address the ailment at risk.

Chairman, 2020 World Tuberculosis Day (WTD) Planning Committee from the KNCV Foundation, Dr. Bertrand Odume, made the call in Abuja Tuesday at the 2020 pre-world TB Day press conference to be marked on the theme, “It’s Time to End TB in Nigeria: Check that cough, timenodey“!

Odume noted that each day, nearly 4,500 people lose their lives to TB and close to  30,000 people are infected by the disease, recalling that in 2018, I.4 million people globally died of TB-related causes, including over 205,000 children as a result of low TB treatment coverage and poor information amongst citizens.

He said, “Global efforts to combat TB have saved an estimated 58 million lives since the year 2,000 and reduced the TB mortality rate by 42%. However, the emergence of drug-resistant TB poses a major health threat and could put at risk the gains made in efforts to end the health challenge.

“Over 95% of TB deaths occur in low and middle-income countries, especially Africa. Nigeria is one of the countries with the high burden of disease globally. According to the 2018 Global TB report, Nigeria is among the 30 high-burden countries for TB, TB/HIV and MDR-TB”.

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